Tim Skubick: 2 Dems start to position themselves for a run against Gov. Rick Snyder

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Gretchen Whitmer at Gov. Rick Snyder's State of the State speech. She's been the top-ranking Democrat - but in the minority party - in the Legislature.Chris Clark | MLive.com

Neither of these Democrats is running for governor yet, but in the war of words aimed at Gov. Snyder, the early lead goes to one Gretchen Whitmer.

She’s been swatting away at Gov. Rick Snyder the way former Sen. John Engler flailed away at former Gov. Jim Blanchard - which is saying quite a lot for Ms. Whitmer.

Lagging far behind is one Mark Schauer, who is late to the party even though it’s way early for typical citizens to give a hoot about the 2014 contest for governor.

Realizing that she is ahead in the beating-up-the-incumbent game, here comes the former congressperson and former senate Democratic leader with a two-page ditty filled to the brim with bitter bromides and seething slashing at his possible opponent Mr. Snyder.

“Once an elected official breaks the bond of trust with the public, no amount of feel-good rhetoric can repair the rupture,” he writes. Oh-oh.

He whacks the governor for squandering goodwill by “using deceptive, heavy-handed tactics to pursue a narrow special interest agenda.”

Double oh-oh.

And he concludes it’s now impossible for this governor to build the “bipartisan consensus we need to resolve our most stubborn problems.”

As political attacks go, this was not bad, but it does not appeal to independent and moderate Republicans who might be taking a second look at Mr. Right to Work Gov. Snyder.

Mark Schauer

Mr. Schauer could care less. If he’s going to catch up with Ms. Whitmer, he has to go after the dyed-in-the-wool Democrats.

Mr. Schauer, meet Mitt Romney.

He uttered all sorts of intemperate things as he dove to the far right of his party to nail the nomination. Mr.Schauer is doing the same thing in his attempts to appeal to the far left.

The danger is scrambling to crawl back to the sensible center after you’ve wandered out too far. Mr. Schauer doesn’t have to worry about that yet, but he needs to recapture some ground he has lost to Ms. Whitmer, who's been at this for almost two years.

More to come from both.

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